ALIA Children's and Youth Services

ALIA Children's and Youth Services promotes library services to children and youth, highlighting children's literature and fostering professional development of members. It co-ordinates the national ALIA awards for children's librarians, promotes children's librarianship within the profession, and encourages networking and communication between members.

CONTACTS/ HOW TO GET INVOLVED

Contacts

Nicola McGeown - Group Convenor

Nicola McGeown is an enthusiastic member of the Brisbane City Council Libraries team. Her passions include Children’s / YA literacy, programs and advocacy. She can often be found with a Picture Book in one hand and a cuppa tea in the other!

She runs the 'Picture Book' book club with two other awesome Picture Book enthusiasts. This club was formed to celebrate the awesomeness of Picture Books. They run a twitter chat each month and can be found on Twitter and Instagram @picturebookbc.

She is the convenor of the ALIA Children’s and Youth Services Group and the proud recipient of the 2017 Queensland Library Achiever of the Year Award. This was awarded for her dedication to promoting and advocating for children’s literacy.

Say hello to Nicola on twitter at @Ms_NicolaMarie and @mybookburrow.

Karys McEwen – VIC team member

Karys is a Melbourne-based school librarian, currently working at Glen Eira College. She is originally from Perth and has a Master of Information Management (Librarianship). She is a Victorian CBCA committee member, an ALIA Mentor and has written for Connections, FYI and Incite. Karys is passionate about young adult literature and engaging teenagers in the library. Outside of the library world, she loves café-hopping, walking through the park, making zines, watching trashy reality tv, and cuddling up with her two cats Pip & George.

You can follow Karys on twitter and Instagram @karysrhiann.

Eileen Louden – VIC team member

Eileen hails from Melbourne and first began working in the public library when it became obvious to the staff that she wouldn't leave. She has worked in both school and public libraries and on completion of a Masters of Information Studies, worked as a Youth Services Librarian at Monash Public Library Service. After four and a bit years of singing far too loud at storytimes, she decided to try something completely different and is now the ALIA State Manager for Victoria. She is a gigantic geek and YA nerd and can be found obsessing over fictional characters during the week and dressing up as them on the weekend. Follow her on Twitter: @EileenLouden

Jac Wheadon - VIC team member

Originally from South Australia, Jac is currently working as the Lending Services Supervisor (Ballarat and Wimmera Campus) with Federation University Library. Her qualifications are long and varied and include: a Graduate Diploma in Library and Information Studies, a Bachelor of Accounting, a Graduate Certificate Library and Information Studies, a Graduate Certificate Supply, an Associate Diploma Accounting and a Certificate IV Procurement. She’s worked in Accounting, Schools, Defence logistics and a range of Government Departments before returning to study and getting to pursue her lifelong dream of working in a Library. In her spare time she’s working on a research project with her all-time favourite lecturer, reading entries for the Aurealis Awards, enjoying the Marvel and DC universes, raising an adventurous reader, being the only Port Adelaide Supporter in Ballarat, gardening and knitting.

Mylee Joseph – NSW team member

Mylee has been associated with ALIA CYS since her first professional role as a children’s librarian. These days she works with all of the public libraries in NSW as part of the Public Library Services team at the State Library of NSW. Follow her on Twitter: @myleejoseph or track her down on LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/mylee-joseph-7741a44